Grieve resigns as executive director of Pell City Chamber of Commerce

Erica Grieve is resigning as executive director of the Pell City Chamber of Commerce.

PELL CITY – Erica Grieve is resigning as executive director of the Greater Pell City Chamber of Commerce.

“I appreciated the opportunity,” Grieve said Monday. “I’ve met some great people.”

Grieve’s resignation is effective July 17.

Grieve, 34, said she has no job plans but wanted to spend more time with her 5-year-old daughter before the start of school.

“I love this community and my job,” she said.

Grieve said, however, the job has grown since she began two years ago.

“My family has taken a back seat,” Grieve said. “We’re growing, and this job is growing.”

Grieve was appointed as the executive director for the chamber on April 1, 2012.

“The only thing I can say bad about her is that she is leaving,” said Chamber President Paul Lett. “She’s been great.”

He said a search committee was formed and the process to find a new executive director has begun.

“It’s going to be some big shoes to fill,” Lett said. “She is going to be hard to replace. She has worked night and day.”

He said under Grieve’s leadership the chamber’s membership has more than doubled.

Lett said he was on the committee that hired Grieve.

“She has far exceeded our expectations,” he said.

Lett said the Chamber would like to fill the position quickly, so the new executive director is properly trained and can “carry on without missing a beat.”

Grieve said since she started as the executive director, the chamber has a lot more partnership programs.

“Every single chamber event has grown tremendously,” she said, adding that about 300 people attended last year’s “Business of the Year” awards banquet.

She said the chamber has a networking event every month, and the chamber is spearheading efforts to bring the first Toughman Triathlon to the city in August. The sporting event is expected to attract athletes from across the Southeast.

“We already have 200 people signed up for it,” she said.

Grieve said she plans to go back to work, but wants to relax and spend time with her family for now.

Grieve, who came to Pell City from Jacksonville, was hired after the retirement of former executive director Lynn Batemon.

Before becoming the executive director for the chamber, Grieve worked as a drug treatment counselor at Calhoun Treatment Center in Oxford. Just prior to accepting the chamber position, she worked with the St. Clair County Department of Human Resources.